Erich Segal’s Man Woman and Child & Shekhar Kapur’s Masoom.

Almost 70-80% of the movies are inspired either from a novel or from a short/long story. But when we start comparing the two, it becomes evident that almost in majority of the cases; novels justify the basic idea of creator much more than films do. Hence people who have read the particular novel and have watched the film based upon the same novel, in majority of the cases tend to say that Novel is far more better than the movie. Take Da vinci Code or The Godfather or Primal Fear for example, now all these films are excellent, no doubt about this but those of you who have read the novel would say, “ya , but the novel is better” that is because, you could not get the feeling of satisfaction after watching a movie as compared to reading the novel. Anyway there are few exceptions and Shekhar Kapur’s MASOOM is one of them.
I have seen Masoom thousands of times and recently I also read the novel upon which Masoom is based. Erich Segal’s Man Woman and Child. I adore Erich Segal and I respect every novelist and I always try to take a side of Novelist when it comes to the battle between writers, as Novelist against Screen Writers.
No two products can be compared in any case but the sense of satisfaction that I got after watching Masoom, Man Woman and Child failed to produce it. I would not here tell the End cause it would spoil the whole idea for future readers of the book and audience as far as the movie is concerned. But I have to say that Shekhar Kapur (Director) and Gulzar (screen writer) had given justice to the brilliant idea of Erich Segal’s. For the idea, no doubt, the credit goes to only one man, Erich Segal himself.
Anyway both the creations are fabulous and I strongly will recommend for all the people who haven’t still watched Masoom or read Man Woman and Child to do the same.
I always cry during R D Burman’s two songs “Do naina or Ek kahani” and “ Tujhse Naraj Nahi Jindagi- Female Version”. In fact the great Latabai also could not hide her emotions and have made a little mistake while singing the song, listen to it and those who are good in music would be able to recognize it. Everyone liked it so they decided to keep it as it was looking natural and not artificial. The last scene in the film, the Gun on head (as we say in screen writer’s language) was so much dramatically shot that even audience feel some pressure. I think novel has failed to build up this pressure. End in both art forms are different and I loved both the Ends.
This is pure magic. Those of you who want to see magic, please read Erich Segal’s Mman Woman and Child & Watch Shekhar Kapur’s Masoom.

Cheers
Anand

PARINDA

It was Sunday evening and after few hours of reading as a case study, I decided to go for an evening walk. After coming home, I was willing to watch a good Hindi Movie. (free of cost-off course through Idiot Box)Sometimes I wonder why they call it an Idiot box anyway. I don’t know if it’s everybody’s experience or not, but when you have time and you want to watch something good, it decides to show programs of useless quality. (I guess due to this people started calling it an Idiot box)
Anyway, it was an exception today and there were few good movies to watch on TV. 1. Three Idiots (which I have seen from start to end for like millions of times and even studied it during my script sessions.) 2. Akshay Kumar;s Khiladi (good movie I must say, it was a good effort.) 3. Vinod Chopra’s PARINDA.
No need to say, I decided to watch Parinda and ther were several reasons for taking that decision. 1. Vindo Chopra’s awesome script and film making. 2. Madhuri Dixit. 3. Every character looks real in this film. Nana Patekar. I have great respect for him. If you want to see his real work, See Marathi Play “Purush”, Nana has played –ve role in it. Wonderfully played, what an actor and for that matter even I loved Jackie Shroff and Anil Kapoor in Parinda.
It was the first realistic Gangster film in Hindi Cinema. It’s a story of two brothers trapped in a Gang War. There struggle, family issues, Main Mafia Anna (played by Nana). Parinda was a critical and commercial success, and the official Indian entry for the 1990 Academy Awards.
I will recommend this film for everyone who is interested in seeing quality and serious film. I had a great time watching it and writing about it.
Cheers,
Anand Pethe

Honest Comments on my debut novel 'just another LOVE STORY'\

1. Ashay Javadekar (my UDCT batch mate now pursuing PhD in USA and already produced and directed two short films)

Dear Anand
I read your book. Congrats!
Some more dramatic moments in the relationship between Anita and Anand
would have enhanced the story more. You should try making a film out
of it.

Regards
Ashay

2. Nihal Parkar (brilliant Scientist, My friend.. with mind of guys like Newton and Einstein etc..you get the picture,,)

Hi Anand,
I got the book by mail the very next day after I ordered it, and as soon as I got up today, I read it.I liked it a lot. It took me through many emotions. I kept laughing out loud at many moments, and felt sad at others. It was a very entertaining read. It also reminded me about life at UD. I could visualize it like a movie.
how much is fact and how much is fiction?
Thank you for writing the book. It added something positive to my day today :)
Regards,
Nihal

3. Amar Pethe (Engineer by profession, working with JET Airways)

Hi Anand

I completed reading your novel and it was kinda good effort.
If you could digest my FRANK opinion, I felt like CONTENT are according to its name "JUST another (COMMON) love story". My expectations were too high.It should have been some exciting love story, kind of entirely different, "NA BHUTO NA BHAVISHYATI" kind of.
There are several Bollywood movies having this kind of story so readers like me (again I am not good reader, I admit), who likes something NEW, did not get that out of your novel.
Again sorry if I demoralized you, but thought of giving you FRANK opinion so you could consider this in your new writing.
Regards
Amar

4.Krishna Jarag (Pursuing PhD in Chemistry from Dyes Division, UDCT)
dear aanad, i read you novel.gr8 work yar
wachayla ghetlyavar zopach yet navati
tula patnar nahi, rahileli mi dusrya divshii sakali pahte 4.30 la uthun vachat baslelo.
pethe sala mast lihalays. mhantat na je n dekhe ravi te dekhe kavi
imagination mast aahe karan story dhopatmargane jat nahi madhale twisthi mast aahet

i really feel proud yar ki mazya javalach mitra sundar lekhak hi asu shakto.
i will try for publicity in ICT.
WISH YOU ALL THE BEST.
Krishna

5. Dr. N. Sekar (Professor-Dyes division, UDCT)

Dear Mr Anand
Your novel gave me a live reading. Well done. All the best for future endeavors.
N Sekar

First launch ceremony of my life:- My speech during the pune launch (Part2)

I dreamed of seeing me as an author and today I am one.
Four years ago, when I had returned from US without anything in my hand, without MS {the degree}, without respect, without anything but guilt of failure. I felt like everything around me, my whole life had been demolished. Even after joining for M. Tech. at UDCT, I was very much unhappy and down in confidence. At that very moment, I started writing my experiences, while in he US, after coming back to India, my failure, reasons, cause etc.
I used to write before as well but this time around I started taking it extremely seriously. Infact while connecting the DOTS, today I can say, I joined and completed M. Tech. just to prove myself again after B. Tech. as though it was due to my bad health and physical conditions that made me come back to India from USA, I consider it always as my biggest failure.
Also while connecting the dots, I can say I was destined to come back to India and write a novel and published it in India.
While doing M. Tech. I gathered all the confidence back and I even started doing things that I liked passionately and loved them doing from bottom of my heart, writing, creating.
They say that creation happens when everything around the person has been demolished or shattered. The girl I used to love very much during my B. Tech. days and even during M. Tech. had said “NO” to my proposal, so there was a reason to start creating a LOVE STORY as well.

No.. seriously, I have even thanked her in my acknowledgement for saying “NO” . Otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to craft such a LOVE STORY. So Finally I wrote it.
Deepti is my B. Tech batch mate and when we met during our batch reunion, I accidentally came to know that she was also interested in writing. I showed her the entire 1st draft of this novel. And then she started working on elaborating and editing of it. For 2nd , 3rd and.. till 7th draft.
Finally when we felt that the material is ready for approaching publisher, we started finding out the one. Eventually after 2 and half years of hard work, we got success in seeing our names as Authors.
Currently, I am working on 2 ideas for my next novel which we will discuss probably after a year or so during the launch of that particular book.
Right now I am pursuing a course in Screenplay writing and Direction. Today I am dreaming of writing my own script and directing my own film.
For all this, I really want to thank my parents who stood behind me all the time and supported me and my crazy ideas.
I thank my all relatives, friends all of them who supported me always. I thank Sham kaka, rahul dada, Sudhakar dada. I thank my sister madhura and her husband who is like brother to me, Mahesh. I thank my cousins, koutuk, sarang, akshay etc.
I thank my Co-Author and Editor, Deepti. I thank all of you for coming and supporting me.
Thank you very very much.

First launch ceremony of life:-My speech during the pune launch (Part1)

Off all the questions we leave unanswered the one that comes back to haunt us the most is
What if….
What if I had married my college sweetheart?
What if I had been born rich?
What if I had planned a little less?
What if I could write a novel?
What if I could make my own movie?
What ifs are never idle fantasy. These are our hopes dreams and desires. Logic and reasons are the “Naphthalene balls” we use to pack them away into a sandook called ‘someday’ but when that day comes, we are too poor, too old, too tired or too lazy.
This is what Steve Jobs said during his commencement address at Stanford University,
“You cannot connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust...in something…your gut, destiny, life….karma whatever. This approach has never let me down and it has made all the difference in my life. Believing that dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart, even when it leads you off the well worn path and that will make all the difference.”
So, anyway what exactly I wanted to tell was if you dream and dream big and take the necessary action to follow it, you can achieve it at some point of time.
As famously said by Walt Disney, “ If you can dream it, you can do it.”
I dreamed of seeing me as an author and today I am one.

FINALLY POSITIVE OVERCOMES NEGATIVE

Sometimes unexpected thoughts visit us, our mind gets crowded with them and we have to make some special efforts to throw such negative thoughts out and warm up the mind with the energy of positive thoughts. I never expected that when I would see my name in the print form on the novel….
Just another LOVE STORY
A novel by- and then my name
Instead of becoming jubilant and enjoying the scene, I started doubting myself.
(BY D WAY I HAVE TO MENTION HERE THAT SEEING YOUR NAME AS AN author makes you feel very proud of yourself no doubt .. BUT.. )
By the way, today in the evening, I got a call from my publisher saying that they have sent my share of books to me and they will soon sent the novel to distributors and it’s the time that I should start preparing myself as my novel’s gonna hit the market soon for Post production activities and promotions etc..while this conversation was going on.. a courier guy came in and droped my books… (What a timing I thought)
And to tell the truth for the first time in this journey, I became bit scared. I don’t know what hit me. I started asking myself hell lot of questions.. Whether my efforts give me some kinda reward back?
Whether novels gonna reach to lot of people. Whether denying the paid publicity is a wise option? Whether .. how why when what ….
You know.. hell lot of questions made my evening miserable which should have been the most memorable evening as I saw my name as an author for the first time in the print form.
Again , you know people around you make your life miserable too. Everybody these days ask me for a free copy without even realizing the efforts I have made. Everyone gives me different suggestions especially to promote the book and the funny part is the suggestions many times are so opposite of each other that I became confused…
Anyway, you get the point. I ruined my memorable evening in to dark night by thinking about my future.
Well, that’s LIFE| You need to pay for everything.
I remember one of my engineering professors used to say, In life there is no free lunch.
Tomorrow I need to start up fresh again feeling all the positive points in my head and vomiting all the negatives.. Finally I am novelist. Finally my dream has come true Finally I saw my name in print on a novel Finally…. Finally and Finally….. HOPE FOR D BEST.

Accepted, I was partly responsible but …

A bizarre experience that I underwent today was to lose a credit card. I have never gone through this till today so it was kind of novel experience and not to tell that I completely freaked out.
Anyway, it was not a stolen thing though; it was partly my fault and partly the machines fault that I used to remove the cash. I wanted to take out some cash so I went in to a ATM of a reputed nationalize bank which is near my institute. Not to tell there was no security guard around and there was nothing written on the door about machines ability to process the order…
I went in relax mood and came out exhausted. (No, don’t think ‘exhausted’ in that manner but somewhat worried and sad manner..) I inserted a card and after putting a correct pin... (I am saying correct as machine recognized it.) Which was accepted and I put the amount required and press the continue button. After few tries (Machine, if alive would have said..”abbe mere under kuchh cash nahi hai mein kahase tereko cash du..???” and would have given me a standard GALI.. anyway) I guess ATM machine gave up and without returning me my card it gave a receipt saying ‘Transaction failed’ and screen flashing ‘thank you for using..bla bla bla..’
So I lost my card, I did not get a cash and I had only receipt which said useless thing. A guard came in and said, “ sahib ye machin to chalu nahi hai?”
I (in agitated voice) “ tum kaha the? Or darvaje pe bhi kuch likhha nahi hai, mere ko kese pata chalega?
Abhi kya karu bolo? Paisa chahiye, card machine ke andar chala gaya..”
“ Me ek minute ke liye pan lane gaya tha ..”
I understood that there was no point in arguing with him and I would not get my card back through this hopeless discussion.
So I called up one of my friends who had gone through same, few days earlier and I knew it as I was with him at that time. Incidentally our cards are of the same bank so he had the toll free number So I got the number and called up and blocked the card immediately so it can’t be miss used. I felt bit relax then and I started walking towards bus stop rearranging my time schedule of tomorrow as I have to go to bank.
Consequences: I had no card with me right now. I need to go to the bank tomorrow and re apply for it which will take another 10-15 days to process and get back to me…
Conclusion: - Before going to ATM make sure that the machine is in use and not out of order…..